Work Drama- Advice Appreciated

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I'm dealing with an "interesting" situation at work and would love some advice on how best to handle it as I have been put in a rather awkward position.

I am the lead for a crew of about 12 workers. Our crew has been together since March. They are an absolutely wonderful crew. Everybody gets along, works hard, and has fun doing it. I hear all the time how I have the "boring" crew because we have had zero disciplinary write ups and there is no interpersonal drama whatsoever. I had a really good assistant who unfortunately had to leave because his mother was very ill.

A couple of weeks ago I got a new assistant. I was very pleased with the choice as his lead told me he was a good worker. He is very nice, seemed genuinely pleased with the crew, and other than some paperwork struggles, I thought everything was going well. The way our schedules work, my assistant and I work opposite shifts, and I only see him for a few minutes at shift change. Last week, several crew members came to me with some rather serious allegations. I communicated the information to the supervisors and it went up the chain from there. My assistant was talked to and I thought things were being handled.

When I came in early yesterday, my assistant was there also and told me that he had been talked to. I couldn't really say anything about my part because what had been told in confidence. He did not work on the crew yesterday and I thought things were resolved. Today he was off and came in and approached crew members as they were coming in. He may have intimated to one crew member that he thinks he knows who reported him and claims they are just trying to cause drama. The thing is, it is not just one person who has approached me or my superiors, it is multiple members of the crew.

Now my assistant and I have to sit down with one of our supervisors at shift change tomorrow to hash it all out to make sure we are all "on the same page". I don't know what to do or say. On the one hand, I like my assistant as a person and was pleased with how I perceived things were going. On the other hand, my crew has never been one to make up stories or try to cause drama. The fact that multiple people are coming to me and these are all very good crew members, tells me that something is up. I don't know if things are being taken out of context or blown out of proportion or if everything is exactly as reported, but I believe there is an issue of some sort. I was told by one supervisor to handle it a certain way and that is what I have done. I do not feel that I am at liberty to share this in front of my partner. I also do not feel that I am at liberty to share what was told to me or who said it because it was told to me in confidence. (They know that I will share this information with the supervisors, but that is it). I also do not feel like I can say anything because I have not personally witnessed anything.

When I interact with him, I don't feel it is my place to say the crew is having problems as I have been asked to handle this in a very specific way and I don't want to create any more drama. I like him as a person, and so I feel torn because I don't want him to feel like I am going behind his back or being two faced. How would you handle a situation like this? What would you say or do?

 

[lillygator]

why did you not go to your assistant first? were these "people" on his same level? or thereabouts?

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Several reasons: First of all, these were told to me in confidence and involved very serious allegations that I cannot share. The nature of the allegations were such that I could not go to my assistant. My supervisors are to be kept abreast of what is going on with my crew. I approached one when I first became aware and explained what I had heard. I was told how the company wanted me to proceed from there. I made sure to tell them that I had not witnessed anything, that I had just heard from one crew member that other crew members were having problems with my assistant. The next day, those crew members approached me. Again, the allegations were of a very serious nature. Most things I would simply handle on my own by talking to my partner. In fact, I had already done that regarding some of the problems with the paperwork. The allegations go well beyond the level of what I can handle on my own and indicate a very serious problem that needs to be handled by our superiors.

I know I'm being vague, but I'm limited in what I can share. Believe me, if I could have handled it by going to my assistant I would have.

The way it works, I am in charge of the crew, the operation of our section, and all of the paperwork including time sheets and scheduling. My partner is in charge when I am not there. we rotate our crews into the various positions, run breaks, etc. We also act as liaisons between the crew and supervision/management. We keep the crew up to date on any management decisions, and keep supervision and management up to date on what is happening with the crew. I guess you could say that we are the "boss" of the crew, so these people are directly underneath my assistant and I.

I do think part of the problem is that my old assistant was very well liked and left some pretty big shoes to fill. My assistant is very nice, but he is also very different in personality. He is new to leadership and is definitely struggling with certain aspects of it- but to an extent everybody does. I did tell my crew in advance to please be patient as he learns the ins and outs of leadership. However, this has gone beyond mere personality differences. Based on what I have been told by the crew ( and assuming everything is being presented accurately) I wonder if my assistant is one of those people who make a very good crew member, but is not really meant for leadership.

 

[lillygator]

you are right, you are being evasive, but I also have no idea what could be SO BAD that you couldn't go to your assistant first....if it was that bad I would assume a termination slip would be issued. depending on what it was, I would be pissed (as the asst....)obviously people are talking about him and has he been able to defend himself?

 

[GRUMPY PIRATE]

I have, in the past, had to deal with similar situations.

the thing that you have to do in "sit downs" is to focus on the actions of the employee that was in error (I know I am generalizing)

if, duing the conversation between you three, he keeps trying to "find out" who reported him/her, you have to emphasize that it is really not important, and that his/her actions are what cause the root problem and also caused this meeting.

You also need to impart that trying to play detective in his off time and find out who did the reporting is going down a path that will not shed a good light on his/her intentions. (and may very well be aginst company policy when an employee reports a problem)(you will have to know the policy/regulations on that subject)

(trying to do a counter-attack, if you will, on someone reporting a problem in the workplace is what the employee sounds like he/she was attempting)

The process is probably going to be a bit stressful for all concerned.

good luck.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

you are right, you are being evasive, but I also have no idea what could be SO BAD that you couldn't go to your assistant first....if it was that bad I would assume a termination slip would be issued. depending on what it was, I would be pissed (as the asst....)obviously people are talking about him and has he been able to defend himself?

It is bad enough that his job could possibly be in jeopardy. Our company is very careful in these situations and will gather quite a bit of evidence before anybody is demoted or terminated. Unfortunately, this can sometimes mean that people who should have left long ago are still here while the company builds a paper trail. One allegation involved flat out asking my crew to lie to our superiors about something, putting my crew in an awkward position. Aside form the seriousness of the allegations (and the fact that allegations that serious must be shared with supervision), going to him would reveal who came to me as most of this was directed towards one employee in particular. I would not have been able to approach him without breaking that confidence.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

If the allegations are that serious, you were right to go directly to your supervisors rather than talking to the assistant first. This is an HR issue that has to be handled very carefully and by the book. If your supervisors tell you to handle it a certain way, you have to do it to protect your own job. Even if you like the guy as a person and don't want to see him get in trouble, it's best to follow procedure and protect yourself. The seemingly smallest HR issues can quickly escalate into bigger issues and even potential lawsuits. I used to work in HR/Employee Relations and we would advise our employees to come to us right away with issues or allegations between employees. It's best to follow procedure and start documenting in case things do blow up. It's human nature to want to help people out of a jam, but in a work situation that's not always the best way to go.

As for the meeting with the assistant and the supervisors, it's best for you to tell the truth. Don't comment on anything you're not 100% sure about. If you didn't see any of the reported incidents happen, say so. Let the supervisor lead the meeting and only speak if you're asked a direct question. That's the best advice I can give you without knowing more about the situation. Good luck!

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Thank you. I think the meeting is my biggest concern because I don't know wht my supervisor is going to ask me or say, and I'm a little worried that she might think that I am somehow instigating or flaming the drama. We have two supervisors. I have been going to the other one simply because we are on the same shift and I don't know if the other supervisor (the one we are talking with) fully understands the situation or knows what I have been asked to do by the other supervisor/ management. It's not necessarily that I even want to help my partner out because I believe my crew and at this point am in danger of losing my best crew member because of this whole debacle. Like I said, I have been with this crew since March and my loyalty is to my crew. But I also do not want to feed the drama or make things worse.

 

[Imzadi]

EB, you've referred to him as your "partner" and at other times, your "assistant." I'm being picky because how YOU think of him influences how you feel about him and your working relationship. (I'm not invested either way which you call him.) If he's a "partner" on even footing, you'd handle him differently than if you think of him as your assistant, (a subordinate.)

In the end, I think when you hash it out with him tomorrow, or even if you see him first, you can very well say, "As a person I really like you. I feel [whatever you feel] about you going through this situation. As your superior, I am in a difficult place because I have been instructed and ordered to adhere to strict procedures for this situation. I hope you understand that. It is not personal. As much as you may want me to do something different. I have to follow the procedure laid out for me."

It sounds like you've known your crew for a long time. Ultimately, you have to decide if they were so disgruntled that they could make up these allegations. If you really don't think they would, I personally think you should stick by them. This assistant might be replaced, or made to toe the line. How you handle this situation and whether you maintained loyalty to the team (if it is deserved,) and stayed professional, will be something that stays with themafter this situation has been resolved. It will affect your long term relationship going forward. It takes a long time to build up loyalty & trust. It can take an instant to lose it.

 

[Imzadi]

Even if you like the guy as a person and don't want to see him get in trouble, it's best to follow procedure and protect yourself.

You are not responsible for this person or their job, no matter how much you like him. If he did actions to get himself fired, that was his responsibility.

Thank you. I think the meeting is my biggest concern because I don't know wht my supervisor is going to ask me or say, and I'm a little worried that she might think that I am somehow instigating or flaming the drama. We have two supervisors. I have been going to the other one simply because we are on the same shift and I don't know if the other supervisor (the one we are talking with) fully understands the situation or knows what I have been asked to do by the other supervisor/ management. It's not necessarily that I even want to help my partner out because I believe my crew and at this point am in danger of losing my best crew member because of this whole debacle. Like I said, I have been with this crew since March and my loyalty is to my crew. But I also do not want to feed the drama or make things worse.

They may need you to tell both supervisors separately because the allegations are so serious. This is their way of being thorough and also to cover their own butts. If one supervisor handled the whole thing and made an incorrect choice of deciding to fire your assistant, and was later found out to be wrong, this matter could really blow up.

Don't assume this supervisor knows anything. just start from scratch and answer his questions, If he asks why did you do it this way, explain the other supervisor told you to follow this procedure. Don't assume this one knows what the procedure is. He may have advised a different procedure. So you have to be clear in stating what the other supervisor told you to do.


And I agree with GP. The fact that the assistant has been going around trying to figure out who told, smacks of wanting retaliation. It's one thing to want to know who made allegations against you. But, the way you explained it, he seems to be going out of his way, in a not good way. Professionalism on the job would tell him, it's company policy, being done this way to protect that party, yet he's still trying to find out on his own.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

Sorry Luv Bunnies, we use both terms at my place of business. I am the lead and his title is assistant lead. There is a pay difference and I have more experience and responsibilities (like making the schedule), but the company really sees this as more of an equal relationship. The title has more to do with experience than anything. At the end of the day, leads and assistants do pretty much the same job and I am not seen as an authority over him other than to help him and train him. If both of us were working the same shift, the company does not care who is in charge as they see us more as equals than anything else.

 

[scrapbookworm]

If the allegations are serious, then you are right to go immediately to your supervisors. If you had gone to him first, then it could have been interpreted as you were tipping him off, or even being a accomplice. Serious workplace 'crimes', as you are eluding to, have a way of becoming common knowledge. You did the right thing.

If he questions you about it, then say "I'm sorry, but I'm not at liberty to discuss this." Keep repeating it, if necessary.

Self preservation is one of the most important things in this economy. Do not do or say anything that will jeopardize YOUR job.